Figured fabric



F 6, 1935. H. .1. CA-RRAG'HER -5- AL 7 1,992,504

FIGURED FABRIC filed April 25, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I ATTORNEY.

1935- J. CARRAGHER ET AL 1,

FIGURED FABRIC Filed April 25, 1932 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 5w v m. fiyug.

. 1 -BY 3 WR- ATTORNEY.

Patented Feb. 26,. 1935 PATENT OFFICE 1,992,604 FIGURED FABRIC Hugh J.Carragher andDolard A. Grenon, Danielson, Conn., assignors to Powdrell &Alexander, Inc., Danielson, Conn., a corporation of MassachusettsApplication April 25, 1932, Serial No. 607,274 18 Claims. (Cl. 139-419The invention relates to fabrics in general, and in particular tocross-woven fabrics such as marquisettes having figures or designsformed thereon through the use of warp or weft elements additional tothe elements which take part in the leno or cross weave which forms theground.

The main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improvedfabric and method of Weaving the same, in which a simpler and cheapermethod of construction will result in securing improved cover or face"on the figure; that is, the portions of the additional elements used tocreate the design or figure will cover and conceal the ground elementscompletely within the areas of the figure in which such coveris'desired, with a minimum loss of yarns through their removal byshearing, and through the use of relatively simple and hence inexpensivetypes of looms in their weaving. Other objects are as will appearhereinafter.

In the production of many different figured fabrics, and notably in theweaving of figured curtain fabrics, it is desired to produce the maximumamount of face and attain a complete covering of the ground warps andwefts throughout a portion or the whole of the area of the figure. Thegreat majority of curtain fabrics are of the marquisette type, in whicha leno weave is used for the ground, with the figure formed throughputting in additional figure wefts, (and occasionally figure warps,also), at the desired points to produce the design upon the cross-wovenground.

Unless the leno weave be suspended throughout the length of the figurebeing woven, the tight intersection of each leno warp with its standardwarp will unavoidably spread the two picks of figure weft respectivelypreceding and following the-crossing of the leno and standard warps,creating a conspicuous and unsightly transverse crack in the figure, aswell as allowing naked portions of the warps to show in the figure. Butif to avoid this the leno be suspended -throughout the length of thefigure, weft threads must be interwoven with these uncrossed warpswithin thefigure to hold the weave together, as the figure weftscannot'be relied on for this purpose where the figures are small andwidely separated, as commonly occurs in curtain'fabrics' Hence thegroundwefts extending across the width of the fabric must be interwoven withthese uncrossed warps throughout the figure. The problem is complicatedby the nature of the use of these fabrics as curtains, since the groundmust present a uniform appearance when the light comes from behind andthrough the curtain. Thus the ground filling must be handled so as tomake a uniform ground atall points between figures, both length- 5 wiseand crosswise of the fabric. r

If the ground wefts which must thus be interwoven with the warps inthefigure are put in in pairs in known manner on successive picks, (asmust be done with an ordinary 2 x 1 changebox loom, in order to get theground-weft shuttle home,) these two picks-also will split the figureacross its width, be conspicuous in the finished figure, and detractfrom the face attained. While a single pick may be laid in, by means ofa pick-and-pick loom, having two or more shifting shuttle-boxes at eachend of the lay, such looms are rarely if ever available in organizedmills in sufficient numbers to obtain the desired rate of production,and being more ex pensive looms the cost of their product must likewisebe higher, which makes this construction of the weave undesirable.

The customary way of attaining the desired. maximum of face. of aweft-float figure on a leno ground is to use a loom with change-boxes onone side only, as in the usual 2 x 1 loom, running one of the necessarytwo successive picks of ground weft through the figure in interwovenrelation with the warps, and floating the returned pick leading back tothe box-end of the lay over the whole width of the ground, (so as toavoid weaving the ground with a different count of weft betweenlaterally adjacent figures than between figures succeeding one anotherin the length of the fabric, and thus spoiling its uniformity)thereafter shearing this superfiuous pick off all the way across. Thiscustomary method has several drawbacks, chief of which is the waste ofevery other pick of ground weft woven during the length of the figures,which adds materially to the cost of production; it has the addeddisadvantage of thickening the selvage opposite and for the length ofeach figure, because the picks preceding and following the 1 shorn pickactually form part of the ground of the fabric, and must be tiedsecurely into the selvages, which involves leaving a short length ofeach shorn pick extendinginwardin the selvage portions of: the fabric.Where the shorn pick is caught into the figure, it has the drawback ofsplitting the solid appearance of the figure, as already seen.

With the object of avoiding these drawbacks of prior methods-0fconstruction, the invention v return pick of ground weft with thestandard warps in the position desired for the insertion of the nextsucceeding pick of figure weft. With this relationship established, itis possible for the two picks of figure weft named to move toward eachother until they are substantially in contact, and thus each willoverlie and com.-

pletely conceal its previously adjacent and now underlying pick ofground weft. The manner in which other aims, of the invention areattained will appear hereinafter.

An illustrative embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a face view of a section of marquisette fabric having a smallfigure woven in'accordance with the invention, the figure wefts beingshown more sharply defined than in actuality to make plain the weave.

Fig. 2 is a back view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view showing a portion of the improved weave atthe beginning of a figure similar to that of Fig. 1, showing the orderof the various elements and their relation before the figure wefts areshorn.

Fig. 4 is a transverse section on line 4-4 of 3, looking in thedirectionof the arrows, only so much of the width of the fabric as isincluded between the arrows being shown.

Fig. 5 is a view in longitudinal section on line 55-0f Fig. 3, lookingin the direction of the arrows, showing the elements in the order inwhich they are woven.

Fig. 6 is a view corresponding to Fig. 5, showing the relation of theelements more nearly in the form which they actually assume in thefinished fabric, and making plain how the ground wefts are disposedunder and below the figure wefts.

In the particular fabric shown to illustrate the principles of theinvention, the standard warps are indicated at 1, while the leno warpsor doups are indicated at 3. The ground wefts 5 as usual are insertedsingly, one after another in the ground, overlying the standard warpsand tied .and standard warps between each pick and its succeeding pick.

At the beginning of the weaving of a figure, the leno is suspended forthe proper number of warps widthwise of the fabric, by means of specialharnesses for lifting the standard warps. Figure wefts '7, 9, are theninterwoven with the standard warps 1, alone, at the face of the fabric.The leno warps 3 throughout the width of the figure are all carriedacross the back of the figure for its full length without interweavingwith the figure wefts. The figure wefts are interwoven with the standardwarps in plain weave, i. e., for example, on the first pick of figureweft '7, the odd-numbered standard warps are raised, leaving theeven-numbered standard warps and all the leno warps down. On thesecwarps and all the leno threads down. Additional figure wefts areinserted in corresponding and obvious manner.

The ground weft 5 is next inserted, after putting in the requisitenumber of picks of figure weft to obtain the desired degree or characterof face, the number depending on the count, char ester, and twist, etc.,of the figure weft. For the insertion of the first pick of ground weft,the standard warps remain unchanged; the stand= ard warps which wereraised for the last preced= ingpick of figure weft are kept raised, andthe standard warps which were down at this pick of figure weft arelikewise kept down for this first pick of ground weft. But the lenowarps are now raised for the first time. Then the order of the standardwarps is changed to that which they are to have when the next pick offigure weft '1 of the same figure is to be inserted, the leno warps arekept raised, and the return pick of groundweft 5 is laid in. Thereafter,the anticipated first pick 'I of a new group of figure wefts is insertedbefore the shedding order of the standard warps is changed, the lenowarps having again been dropped. As is obvious, the direction ofshedding of the warps is given for cases where the fabric is woven faceup. If necessary or desirable to weave the fabric face down, thesedirections will of course be reversed.

This order of the warps is shown in Fig. 3, and its result in givingcover or face to the figure is made plain in'Fig. 4, in which latter itis to be noted that the figure weft indicated at 7 corresponds, in theorder of its engagement, to the first figure weft 7 of the second groupof figure wefts shown in Fig. 3.

Thus, it will be obvious from Fig. 4 that the figure wefts are held downonly by alternate standard warps l, and that the ground wefts adjacentto these figure wefts pass always to the same side of the standard warpsas their adjoining figure wefts. The result is that whenever a pair ofground wefts is inserted in the figure, the figure weft preceding thispair is free to slip forward over the first of these picks of groundweft,

while the pick of figure weft succeeding pand after the intermediatepairs of ground wefts are introduced and cause a rearrangement of theelements from that shown in Fig. 5 in which the paired picks of groundweft 5 and 5 are on the same level, to that shown in Fig. 6, in whichthe figure wefts have expanded until one thereof overlies each of thesaid picks of ground weft, crowding them to the back of the fabric in'sodoing. It is for the purpose of ensuring that the ground wefts will goto the back of the figure, that the two kinds of wefts are wovendifferently with respect to the leno threads, which as seen and as shownin Fig. 2 extend across, the back of the figure. Fig. 5 shows thetheoretical order in which the leno threads are lifted and lowered,while Fig. 6, shows substantially what actually happens to the pairs ofground wefts 5, 5 as a result of the equal tension on the leno andground warps. The ground wefts also serve to tie down the otherwiselengthy fioats of the leno warps.

After the weaving, the floats of figure wefts extending across betweenlaterally adjacent figures are shorn off, this constituting the onlywaste or loss of yarn through the shorn operation. The ground weft. 5 iscontinuous throughout the fabric, (except for accidental failure, ofcourse) and is not shorn off in any way.

' While Fig. 1 portrays the figure wefts with exaggerated sharpness, soas to show that they are held to the ground through interweaving with:the standard warps 1, in actual practice the figure wefts if of properlyselected yarns lie in such close contiguous relation as to cover andcompletely conceal .the standard warps 1 as well as the ground wefts andleno threads which are thrown to the back of the figure, with the resultthat the figures of fabrics made according to the principles of theinvention convey to the eye the impression of embroidered or appliquedesigns. This appearance is enhanced through the fact that the shornends of the figure wefts terminate necessarily a slight distancelaterally beyond the last warps by which they are caught down, so thatthere is no visible disturbance of the straight and parallel relation ofthe ground wefts in the ground up to the very edge of the figure, and tothe eye these wefts seem to extend straight across beneath the figurewithout distortion. The use of the leno motion to cross the doup warp 3under the standard warp 1 so as to bind some or all of the figure wefts7, 9, lying between the preceding and the following picks of ground weft5}, 5 within the stitch or diagonal crossing of the doup and theassociated standard warp at the points where the figure wefts pass outof engagement with the warps and begin to fioat for the purpose of beingshorn off, as at the points a: and y, Fig. 3, may be resorted to toassist in holding the ground wefts straight and parallel until theydisappear beneath the figure wefts, and to aid in creating a sharp anddistinct contrast between the figure wefts and the adjacent region. Ithas the advantage of preventing the escape of the leno warps 3 out fromthe cut ends of the figure wefts after shearing to form warp floats, andthus makes it possible for the first time to weave straight-sidedfigures with a series of figure wefts terminating alongside a singlewarp without this highly objectionable warp float.

An added feature of this construction is the neat aspect of the back ofthe fabric within the area of the figure, a feature of no little valuein curtain fabrics, which are very often viewed from the back. At thestart of a figure, and as the standard warp is lifted, every other lenowarp is crossed under its standard warp, with the result that the lenothreads are brought together and extend the full'length of the figure inpairs which are held in this paired relation through engagement of onepick of each pair of ground wefts 5 5 with the next adjacent standardwarp at either side of the pair of leno warps thus brought together.Thus, in Fig. 3, ground weft 5 passes over standard warp 1 at the point10, while ground weft 5 passes over standard warp 3 at 12, whichrelation serves to hold together the two leno warps 14 in the mannerdescribed.

An additional important result of thus floating the groundwefts over aplurality of warps at the back surface of the figure while engaging thembeneath a warp at each end of such floats, is that these ground wefts 55 not only are put wholly below the plane of the figure wefts 7, 9,during the length of the float, and thus cannot split the figure andspoil the face, but also are formation of lengthy floats at the backwhich would be unsightly and would catch on surrounding objects causingpulled or broken threads in the curtain.

In the fabric woven according to the invention, every pick of groundweft weaves cloth, instead of every other pick in the figure being lostas under customarymethods. In additi a to the reduced waste andincreased production thus attained, the figure is given a face or coverof a quality not attained heretofore, and one which completely concealsthe mechanics of the union between figure and ground, while the methodand appliances for the weaving remain of the simplest.

What is claimed as our invention is;-

1. A fabric having in combination standard warps, leno warps, groundwefts, and figure wefts interwoven with the standard warps alone, twopicks of ground weft being inserted between successive and oppositelywoven picks of figure weft and each being woven similarly to itsadjacent figure weft.

2. A fabric having in combination standard warps, leno warps, and groundwefts and figure wefts both interwoven with the standard warps alonewithin the figure, the ground wefts within the figure being.inserted inpairs between figure wefts and each ground weft of a pair beinginterwoven with the standard warps in the same manner as its adjacentfigure weft.

3. A fabric having in combination standard warps, leno warps, figurewefts, and ground wefts inserted in pairs and overlain by the figurewefts.

4. A fabric having in combination standard warps, and the ground weftspass across the fig- 4 ure in the same relation to the standard warps asthat of the adjacent figure wefts.

6. A figured cross-woven fabric in which the figure wefts are held tothe ground by standard warps, and the ground wefts pass across thefigure in the same relation to the standard warps as that of theadjacent figure wefts, and in opposite relation with respect to the lenowarps.

'7. A fabric having in combination ground wefts, figure wefts, and lenoand standard warps crosswoven in the ground so as to maintain the groundweft continuous and of uniform count, the ground wefts traversingthefigure in adjacent pairs beneath and covered by the figure wefts. T

8, A fabric having in combination warp elements, figure wefts, andground wefts traversing the figure in adjacent pairs, each ground weftengaging the warps overlying the figure weftsv with the ground warps asbinders where the leno is suspended, each weft of a pair occupying thesame relation to the ground warps as its next adjacent figure weft.

10. A method of weaving which comprises in combination weaving amarquisette ground, suspending the leno crossing at intervals bothlengthwise and widthwise of the fabric in forming a figure, interweavingfigure wefts with the warps where the leno crossing-is suspended, andcarrying the ground wefts through the figure in successive picks whilethe leno crossing is still suspended, a part of such picks beingarranged to underlie 'picks of figure weft.

11. A weft-figured cross-woven fabric having in combination standardwarps, doup warps, ground wefts inserted in pairs of successive andadjacent picks each member of which engages the ground warps outside thefigures, and figure wefts interwoven with the warps while the lenocrossing is suspended, with at least one ground weft of each pairfloated over a plurality of warps within the figure.

12. A weft-figured cross-woven fabric having in combination standardwarps, doup warps, ground wefts inserted in pairs of succesive andadjacent picks each member of which engages the ground warps outside thefigures, and figure wefts interwoven with the warps, while the lenocrossing is suspended, with at least one ground weft of each pairfloated over a plurality of warps within the figure and at the surfaceof the latter.

13. A weft-figured cross-woven fabric having in combination standardwarps, doup warps, ground wefts inserted in pairs each member or whichengages the ground warps outside the figures, and figure weftsinterwoven with the warps while the leno crossing is suspended, with atleast one ground weft of each pair floated over a plurality of warpswithin the figure and at the surface of the latter, and also caughtunder a warp within the figure. 1

14. A weft-figured fabric having in combination' standard warps, doupwarps, and ground wefts interwoven to form a leno ground, and figurewefts interwoven with the warps, while the leno crossing is suspended,at least one member of a pair of the successive ground wefts beingfloated over a plurality of warps as it passes across the figure andalso engaging beneath one or more warps within the width of the figure.

15. A weft-figured fabric having in combination standard warps, doupwarpaand ground wefts interwoven to form a leno ground, and figure weftsinterwoven with the warps, while the leno crossing is suspended, some orall of the successive ground wefts being floated over a plurality ofwarps as these wefts pass across the figure.

16. A weft-figured cross-woven fabric having in combination standardwarps, doup warps,

ground wefts'inserted impairs each member of which engages the groundwarps outside -the figures, and figure wefts interwoven with thewarpswhile the leno crossing is suspended, with at least .one ground weft ofeach pair floated over a plurality of warps within the figure and at thesurface of the latter, with the standard and doup' warps of the terminalpair of associated warps crossed in engaging the figure weft as thelatter emerges from the figure.

17. A weft-figured fabric having in combination standard warps, doupwarps, and ground wefts interwoven to form a leno ground, each pick ofground weft engaging the ground warps outside the figureyand figureweftsconfined between the standard and doup warps, part of the groundwefts passing across areas of the figure in the same relation to thestandard warps as that of the adjacent figure wefts, and another part ofthe ground wefts in the figure being woven oppositely to their adjacentfigure wefts in relation to the standard warps.

18. A weft-figured fabric having in combination standard warps, doupwarps, and ground wefts interwoven to form a leno ground, and figurewefts interwoven with the warps, both the ground wefts and the figurewefts being interwoven with the warps while the latter extend instraight and uncrossed relation throughout certain areas of the figureand with the doup and standard warps crossed within the figure alongsidethe meeting line of the figure with an adiacent contrasting

